Techniques for so-called “direct current” (DC) cardiac defibrillation have not changed significantly in many decades. Conventional DC cardiac defibrillation techniques deliver shocking pulses at relatively high voltages (e.g., typically over 300 V) to ensure adequate depolarization of the patient's cardiac tissue. While the pulses may be delivered in multiple phases (e.g., biphasic or triphasic) in an effort to minimize tissue damage, they are still referred to as DC. Regardless of multiphase delivery, the relatively high voltage can still produce undesirable hyper-polarization of cardiac tissue and/or depolarization of adjacent thoracic skeletal muscles and nerves. Among other disadvantages, the depolarization of the adjacent thoracic skeletal muscles and nerves can cause extreme patient discomfort.